Adhesive tape package and method of making a shoe using the same



June 1966 c. F. BATCHELDER ETAL ADHESIVE TAPE PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MAKING A SHOE USING THE SAME Filed Aug. 19, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 //VVE/V7'0R$ CHARLES F. BATCHELDER JEROME ARUBICO ATTORNEYS June 28, 1966 c. F. BATCHELDER ETAL 3,257,673

ADHESIVE TAPE IACKAGE AND METHOD OF MAKING A SHOE USING THE SAME Filed Aug. 19, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIGS H67 INVENTORS CHARLES E BATCHELDER JEROME A. RUBICO A TTORNEYS United States Patent 3,257,678 ADHESIVE TAPE PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MAKING A SHUE USING THE SAME Charles F. Batcheider, Milton, and Jerome A. Rubico, Boston, Mass, assignors to Batchelder-Rubico, lne, Boston, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Aug. 19, 1964, Ser. No. 390,526 8 Ql'aims. (Cl. 12-142) This invention relates to method and an article for temporarily attaching two material objects to each other, and subsequently releasing the attachment without damage to either object where the release motion is subject to restrictions in the direction of-applying the release forces. The invention is particularly applicable to the temporary attachment of insoles to lasts in the manufacture of shoes, and is so described herein, although it will be understood that other uses in other fields will be apparent once the invention is understood.

In many shoemaking processes an insole is temporarily fastened to the bottom of a last, after which other components of the shoe are fastened to the insole and to each other, and the last is finally pulled out of the completed shoe. Traditionally, the insole fastening has been done by nailing the insole to the last. The nails employed, of course, make holes in the insole which detract from its appearance. When the nails are pulled, they sometimes break oif at the nail head and leave a portion of the nail in the last. When this happens, the remaining nail portion will scratch or scar the insole when the last is pulled out of the shoe. Sometimes also the broken nail remains instead in the insole resulting in injury to the wearer. In addition, repeated nailing in a like pattern creates damaged areas in the last bottom which eventually have to be repaired.

In recent years numerous attempts have been made to replace insole nailing by the use of cements or adhesive tapes. The adhesive bond of such attaching means must be broken before or during the pulling of the last from the shoe, and, as the last must be pulled from the shoe longitudinally, the breaking of the bond is by a longitudinal tearing or shearing action which is most difficult. In fact, one .supplier of a double-faced adhesive tape for insole attaching even recommends using compressed air admitted through the last to the inside, of the shoe to help break the bond (see US. Patents Nos. Re.25,529 and 3,107,354). We know of no attempt to solve this problem hitherto which has won any commercial acceptance.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to solve this problem and provide means for eliminating the disadvantages of the insole tacking operation in shoemaking. In its most general terms, the object of our invention is to provide means which will effectively hold a workpiece, e.g., an insole of a shoe, in place of an underlying support; e.g., a shoe last, during fabrication of the product; e.g., the shoe, but which'will permit separation of the fabricated workpiece from the underlying support by sliding action alone as in the removal of a last from a completed shoe, particualrly at the toe portion of the shoe.

Another object of the invention is to provide as a new article of commerce a releasable adhesive product in the form of a tubular pressure-sensitive tape.

Other objects and features of the invention will best be understood and appreciated from a detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

' FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one form of releasable wafer in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a preferred form of releasable wafer in accordance with the invention;

Patented June 28, 1966 FIG. 3 is a perspective view of one form of dispensing wafer;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the invention as practiced in the manufacture of shoes;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation showing the initial application of an insole to a shoe last in accordance with the invention; and

FIGS. 69 show in sequence the release operation of one of the wafers located in the toe portion of the last in FIG, 5, the actual thickness of the roll release wafer being exaggerated for the purpose of illustration.

The preferred embodiment of our invention herein shown is illustrated in the context of shoemaking, and consists essentially in the use of an adhesive element we call a roll release wafer. Various forms of water are feasible. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the wafer may be a strip of single-surface adhesive tape 16' folded at edge 11 over on itself with its non-adhesive surface in face-to-face contact in the overlapping areas. Another form is shown in FIG. 2 where the wafer is made up of a wider strip folded twice at edges 11 and 11 and joined to itself at 12. The action of the wafer is to provide a structural (Le. not adhesive) web connection between two parts such as an insole of a shoe and a last with the adhesive serving to secure the structural connecting web portions 11, 11' to the respective parts. Various other more complex constructions can be used. For example, two single-surface pressure-sensitive adhesive tapes could be placed back-to-back with adhesive sides outwardly facing and a connecting web along one or both edges added.

The resistance to forces normal to the plane of the wafer is not great, but in shoemaking resistance in that direction is not of primary importance. The major stresses occur during the upper lasting operation during which the upper is pulled over and fastened to the insole. Such stresses exert forces in the plane of the insole and tend to move the insole laterally or longitudinally, and the wafers of our invention are particularly well suited for resistance against such forces when the direction thereof is aligned with the fold line of the wafer.

Thus, in FIGS. 4 and 5 we have shown three wafers, 17, 18 and 19, applied to bottom 21 of a shoe last 22, with the two wafers 17 and 18 on the forward or sole part of the last bottom 21 and having their folded edges 11, 11' disposed in a lateral direction. The third wafer 19 on heel portion 23 has its folded edges 11, 11' disposed in the longitudinal direction. To .the wafers on the last as shown in FIG. 4, an insole 24 is secured by adhesion to the wafers 17, 18 and 19 as shown in FIG. 5. In this way, during the lasting operation the lateral pull of the lasting machine on insole 24 is resisted by the forwardrnost wafers 17 and 18, whereas longitudinal pulling forces are resisted by the rearmost wafer 19. It will be understood that even though the wafers offer less resistance to forces acting normal to the plane of the wafer and to forces in the plane of the wafer but normal to the fold line, it should not be considered that there is no resistance to such forces, particularly when they are rapidly applied. Such forces tend to cause peeling apart of the tape and the surface to which it is adhered and this takes place relatively easily if done slowly, but less easily if done rapidly. Hence the fully flattened wafer holds the adhered members 21 and 24 relatively fixed in the presence of transient forces in any direction.

As the wafers are arranged in FIGS. 4 and 5, they hold the insole Z4 adequately for lasting, but do not resist the last pulling operation where the separating motion is confined to a single direction because, when the heel portion 23 of the last is pivoted preliminary to last pulling,'the rearmost wafer 19 simply detaches by a peeling action of both of its edges 11 and 1 1'. Thereafter the forward part of the last may be pulled out with the wafer rolling as is illustrated in sequence in FIGS. 6-9. The Wafer 17 will permit relative translation of the adhered surfaces 21 and 24 by an action somewhat like an endless track vehicle tread as can be seen by the overlap 12 located at different positions as the pieces move in the direction of the arrows. As the parts move in this manner separation can be achieved readily by moving the surfaces 21 and 24 away from each other as indicated in FIG. 9.

We prefer to use wafers made in the ring form shown in FIG. 2, even though they are slightly more expensive. We have found that three such wafers, made of threequarter inch wide pressure-sensitive adhesive tape with paper backing of a medium quality, folded into an approximately square shape, are ample to hold an insole for a mans shoe to its last. For childrens shoes, two wafers should suflice; for womens shoes, two or three depending on the rise of the arch. We prefer to apply the wafers to the last bottom before the insole is spotted thereon and attached thereto, but this procedure could be reversed. We prefer to spot the wafers along the centerline of the last bottom, one near the toe, one in the rise of the arch, and one near the heel. If on smaller lasts only two wafers are used, the one at the heel would be omitted. For extra heavy insoles more may be desirable.

With respect to the type of tape used in making the wafers, various pressure-sensitive adhesives are readily available which will peel off cleanly from the materials commonly used for shoe lasts and insoles, such as wood, plastic, leather and coated paper. The rolling action of peeling off the wafers contributes to this clean release, and allows us to use a substantially stronger adhesive than is possible when the bond to be broken is one of shear adhesion as with a double-faced tape (see U.S. Patent No. 3,099,026).

Among the advantages inherent in the use of our roll release wafers for attaching insoles to lasts are the following:

Doing away with insole tacking and tack-pulling;

No nail holes through insoles;

No broken nails in shoes;

No damage to cushion insoles having leather covering;

Shoes calling for socklinings can be lasted with the socklining in place, thereby saving expense, damage to the shoe from cement, and avoiding reducing the interior size of the shoe by the thickness of a socklining inserted after last-pulling;

Faster production;

Lower costs;

Saving of repairs to lasts; and

Avoidance of damage from re-u se of lasts carrying overlooked broken nails.

The roll release wafers can be made by several methods which from the description herein will be obvious to one skilled in the art of the paper converter or the manufacturer of adhesive tapes. The preferred arrangement is to start with the novel tubular adhesive tape of the present invention and sever the wafers or rings from the tube as needed. This is preferably accomplished in feeding and dispensing machinery which has a supply of the tubular tape in roll form. One method of manufacturing the tubular tape suitable for packaging in roll form is by forming a continuous tube from a two inch wide strip of adhesive tape, infolding its edges over a mandrel towards its non-adhesive face, lapping one edge over the other about one-half inch, self cementing the edges together, flattening the tube, and cutting the flattened rings or wafers about three-quarters of an inch long and wide. Such a tube can also be made by folding a strip along its centerline and stitching the edges together. Another method is to wind a strip of adhesive spirally around a mandrel, with over-lapped selfcemented seams. Still another method would be to extrude a thin-walled plastic tub and spray coat the exterior surface with a suitable adhesive.

The individual wafers or rings can also be formed by coiling short lengths of adhesive tape, lapping and joining the ends.

For ease of handling, the tubular tape and the wafers cut therefrom should be mounted on a non-adhesive liner 16 (see FIG. 3) preferably wider than the flattened tube or wafer. The method of fabrication is immaterial to the invention.

The handling, packaging and application of the wafers may also be done in several different ways. We prefer to mount them on a continuous strip of non-adhesive liner at spaced intervals with about one-half inch between each wafer, and with the folded edges transverse to the length of the strip. The strip of lining paper with the wafers so mounted may then be spooled into a coil of a size convenient for handling. Another method would be to stack the wafers, mounted on liners extending beyond their folded edges, into a magazine or cartridge of convenient size, and so packaged. Wafers made with a single folded edge could likewise be handled as above described. We prefer to package them in coils. The liner on which they are mounted should be strong enough to stand the stresses of coiling.

Either stacked or coiled, the wafers can readily be applied to the bottom of a last, or to an insole, either manually or by mechanical means. Such mechanical means scope of this invention. If stacked wafers are used, the liners may be peeled off applied, or left to be removed later when ready to attach the insole to the last. With the continuous coil the liner would be removed when the wafers are first applied.

It will be found that after pulling the lasts from shoes made on lasts with cling loosely to the insoles, some to the last. In either case they may easily be removed.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is:

l. In a method of making a shoe, the steps of attaching an insole to a last with a pressure-sensitive adhesive respective opposed portions that adhere to the said portions connected along an edge by a flexible web, applying forces to bring said insole into intimate contact with said last to flatten said web into a definite fold line, and ultimately separating said last from said insole by an initial sliding motion.

2. The method of claim 1 in which said sliding motion is in a direction transverse to said fold line.

3. In a method of making a shoe, the steps of attaching an insole to a last with at least one tubular wafer therebetween having a pressure-sensitive adhesive on only the outside surface of said tubular wafer, applying forces to nsole to said last and flatten said tubular 5. The method of claim 4 and including at least one of said wafers positioned on the heel portion of said last with the folded edges of the flattened wafer on said heel portion substantially parallel to said longitudinal dimension.

6. In a shoe manufacture, the method of temporarily attaching an insole to a shoe last and of subsequently detaching one from the other, the method comprising folding a strip of pressure-sensitive single-faced adhesive tape into a two-ply flattened wafer so that it has an exterior adhesive surface on each of its plies With no adhesive connection between those plies, applying the said water to the bottom of the last, temporarily attaching the insole to the last by pressure, and ultimately separating the last from the insole by an initial sliding motion to pull the last from the completed shoe.

7. The method of claim 6 in which any water attached to the forepart of the last is placed with its folded edge or edges transverse to the centerline thereof, and any Wafer attached to the heel part of the last is placed With its fold or folds parallel to the said centerline.

3. A package comprising a roll of tubular adhesive tape having a pressure-sensitive adhesive coating on its entire exterior surface and with no adhesive on the interior of the tubular surface, said tubular tape being flattened to have two opposite relatively parallel folded edges and a fiat strip of non-adhesive material adhered to said tubular adhesive tape for supporting said tubular adhesive tape.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Wait 24-671 Lautenschlager 12-145 X Lorenz 24-67.1 Donaldson 117-122 Hendricks 12-145 X Reid et a1. 12-142 Reid et a1. 12-142 Cala 2-243 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

PATRICK D. LAWSON, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A METHOD OF MAKING A SHOE, THE STEPS OF ATTACHING AN INSOLE TO A LAST WITH A PRESSURE-SENSITIVE ADHESIVE WAFER HAVING RESPECTIVE OPPOSED PORTIONS THAT ADHERE TO ONLY THE LAST AND TO ONLY THE INSOLE WITH THE SAID PORTIONS CONNECTED ALONG AN EDGE BY A FLEXIBLE WEB, APPLYING FORCES TO BRING SAID INSOLE INTO INTIMATE CONTACT WITH SAID LAST TO FLATTEN SAID WEB INTO A DEFINITE FOLD LINE, AND ULTIMATELY SEPARATING SAID LAST FROM SAID INSOLE BY AN INITIAL SLIDING MOTION.
 8. A PACKAGE COMPRISING A ROLL OF TUBULAR ADHESIVE TAPE HAVING A PRESSURE-SENSITIVE ADHESIVE COATING ON ITS ENTIRE EXTERIOR SURFACE AND WITH NO ADHESIVE ON THE EXTERIOR OF THE TUBULAR SURFACE, SAID TUBULAR TAPE BEING FLATTENED TO HAVE TWO OPPOSITE RELATIVELY PARALLEL FOLDED EDGES AND A FLAT STRIP OF NON-ADHESIVE MATERIAL ADHERED TO SAID TUBULAR ADHESIVE TAPE FOR SUPPORTING SAID TUBULAR ADHESIVE TAPE. 